My Hero
by marehami
Summary: Mabel is tasked with writing an essay about her hero as part of a college application. Part of the adoption AU


"I'VE HAD IT! I'M CREATIVELY DRAINED! NOT EVEN EIGHTEEN YEARS OLD YET AND ALREADY GIVEN THE BEST OF ME WITH NOTHING LEFT!" Mabel Pines loudly lamented.

She heard a voice from the other side of the wall, "you know sis…. just because we have our own rooms now doesn't mean I can't hear you when you lament like this!" her twin brother Dipper shouted back.

Mabel smiled in spite of herself. It was selfish of her, but even though she and Dipper now had spaces in the mystery shack to call their own it gave her comfort to know he was still there for her.

She heard a knock on her door and her twin brother appeared. He smiled at her and sat down on her bed, "alright Van Gough spill it…. what's on your mind?" Dipper asked with a voice full of genuine concern.

Mabel sighed as she put her head on her hands and collapsed on her desk, "it's this darn application to the Portland Academy of Art…. I've already spent weeks pouring all I have into my portfolio, but now they want like…actually schoolwork from me…. you know that's my weakness,"

Dipper gave her a sympathetic smile as he rubbed her back supportively, "what kind of schoolwork sis? Maybe I can help you," he offered.

Mabel had tears building up in her eyes, "that's the thing Dipper…. you _can't help me_. They want to evaluate me…. just me! Regular old Mabel Pines! After all I'm the one who wants to go to school here…. you have your own college dreams,"

Dipper felt a deep weight of guilt, but he knew that Mabel was right. It wouldn't be fair to either of them for him to help with this one.

He knew that poor Mabel was insecure about her intelligence level. She was by no means dumb, and my gosh the girl tried harder than just about anyone he knew.

It was because of this determination that she had maintained a very respectable B-Average during high school, but compared to Dipper's unshakable 4.0 it had to make her self conscious.

"Hey…. hey now, who said anything about Mabel Pines being _regular?_ Would a regular person have been able to defeat an army of gnomes? Would a regular person be able to return a merman back to his home? Would a regular person defeat a triangle demon?"

Mabel let out a small giggle.

Dipper's voice softened, "Would a regular person be able to overcome real life monsters the way you have?" he asked as he tenderly took his sister's hands in his.

Mabel's eyes began to fill with tears, but she had to admit that she felt a little better.

"Look…. you've poured your blood, sweat, and other bodily functions into this application," Dipper said proudly, as Mabel laughed.

"So just hang in there a little while longer, and show that school what Mabel Pines can do," Dipper said as he ruffled his sister's hair before leaving to give the girl time to focus.

Mabel smiled after he had left. She really was the luckiest twin in the whole world to have such an amazing person and brother.

Suddenly she got the inspiration she needed to make it over her last application hurdle. She picked up her lucky fuzzy pink pen and began to write.

Several weeks later Dipper and Mabel were away at school as their adoptive father Stan Pines went to collect the mail just like he did everyday.

Today, however, one letter in particular caught his attention. It was a letter from that art school that Mabel had so badly coveted.

He knew that he should wait for her to return from school so that she could open it herself, but she wasn't eighteen yet, and Stan was her legal guardian and adoptive father, plus he was just as nervous for his daughter as she was.

He sat down in his old armchair and fidgeted with the envelope for several minutes. He knew once he started opening it he couldn't turn back. His little girl's whole future was in this envelope, and after everything she had been through he wanted more than anything for this letter to make all her dreams come true, and just the thought that it couldn't terrified him.

Finally unable to take the anticipation a moment longer he ripped open the envelope and began reading the contents written on the note.

A few moments later, the twins other adoptive father came into the room where Stan was sitting to find Stan with tears streaming down his face.

"Stanley?" Ford asked nervously.

Stan looked up at him to reveal that even though he did in fact have tears streaming down his face, he also had a huge grin on his face.

Ford approached the chair and noticed the address on the envelope.

"Stanley is that…" Ford started.

Stan simply nodded.

"Did she….?" Ford started to ask.

At that moment both Dipper and Mabel entered the shack. They came into the living room where their adoptive fathers were.

Mabel immediately noticed that Stan was crying, but before she could offer words of comfort she noticed something else.

"GRUNKLE STAN! THAT'S _MY_ LETTER! READING SOMEONE ELSE'S MAIL IS A FEDERAL OFFENSE MISTER!" she shouted as she tried to snatch the contents from his hand.

Stan managed a watery laugh, "hold on their officer, first off, you can't threaten me with law breaking and prison! Second off, you are still a minor and as your father I have a right to these things until you turn eighteen," he said giving her a playful smile.

Mabel smiled back, but still looked agitated.

"if it means that much to ya….here you go," Stan said tossing the note at her. Using all of his acting chops to try to hide his emotions, so to give her a little excitement and suspense.

Mabel snatched the note from his hands and tried to take a deep breath and steady her voice before reading.

" _Dear Miss Pines, Thank you for your application we here at the Portland Academy of Art…."_ She was muttering until she got to the next part…..

"I'M IN! I'M IN! FULL SCHOLARSHIP! I'M IN!" She squealed as she jumped up and down in pure excitement.

Her adoptive fathers and brother pulled her into a tight embrace.

"I'm so proud of you pumpkin," Stan whispered as he kissed her hair.

"You are brilliant my dear," Ford assured as he wiped his own tears.

Dipper was about to extend his own congratulations to his sister, when he noticed a piece of the note had fallen on the floor.

Dipper picked it up, "what's this sis?"

Mabel was still in such a state of nirvana that she wasn't really paying attention, "that must be the essay I wrote,"

Stan smiled as he wiped his eyes, "Dipper why don't you read it?" he asked as he still held his wonderful daughter tight.

Dipper began to slowly read the contents on the page.

 _My Hero_

 _Written By; Mabel Pines_

 _Heroes come in all shapes and sizes, and most people have more than one. I know that I do. I have a wide variety of heroes, some are fictional heroes like duck-tective, but most of my heroes are people I am lucky enough to know in my real life._

 _Some people are heroes, because of how smart they are, and how they use their smarts to make the world a better place. No one embodies this better than my Grunkle Ford. He dedicated his whole life to trying to learn as much as he could about everything! And he uses everything he knows to help other people, but the best part is that no matter how busy he gets he's never too busy to use his smarts to help me with science projects (and help me clean up after they explode)._

 _Other people are heroes, because of how brave they are. People that would take on any challenge to keep the people they love safe. In that sense no one is more heroic than my Grunkle Stan. He would rush into a burning building, fight off all kinds of monsters, and do it all while never ever making a big deal out of it._

 _But the hero I want to focus this essay on is someone who is smart, brave, kind, funny, and the best friend I have ever or will ever have. That person is my twin brother Dipper. Dipper may technically be my little brother (but only by five minutes) but in every way he is a bigger person than I am. He is super smart, but he never show's off. He is always looking out for people that he cares about, but never gets or gives himself the credit he deserves. He is always supportive of the people he loves, even when I mess up big time I know that Dipper will always be on my side. He is a constant source of support and sacrifice. He is the single strongest person I know, and what's even more amazing is how he is actually strong for not just himself, but for other people in his life._

 _He always puts his own hopes and dreams and feelings below my own. All our lives Dipper has exemplified a love that puts other people first. It's something I have to continue working on, but I learn from him every day._

 _After we lost our parents Dipper took on more responsibility than anyone should ever have to. Not the traditional responsibility, we had our Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford to take care of us, but Dipper took on the responsibility of making sure that I kept my positivity and made sure to fill me with hope everyday. He was so strong and I knew from his example that if he could survive then I could survive too._

 _He continued being strong for me through all of these other hardships. No matter what challenges I've had to face Dipper has been there by my side. Offering a selfless and heartfelt love every day of our lives, and no matter how uncertain life is I know that no matter what life has in store for me that Dipper will be there to support me no matter what. I can't think of anything more heroic than that._

By the time he finished Dipper was in tears. Stan and Ford were as well. Dipper pulled his sister into a tight embrace and quietly whispered.

"Never forget that you are my hero,"

"and you're mine...and you are also my mystery twin," Mabel said holding her fists up.

The two pounded their fists together.

"Mystery twins forever,"


End file.
